Richards
bodied Flying 12 to be restored
Hello Phil,
I read with interest your articles on Richards' built Standards.
I have recently acquired a Richards built 38 Flying 12. I
have attached some photos of the car and the builders plates.
Note the TJ Richards trademark "King of the Road". which
is the same as Joseph Lucas used at the time - not sure if this is
a coincidence or not.
I have noticed many differences between my car and English models,
the obvious external differences are the one piece roof with no
insert & the shape of the front bumper (not in photos).
I will try and catalogue all the differences I find as I restore
the car. I am not sure how much of the car was locally made
& how much was imported from England.
Lastly, I would like to congratulate you on your excellent web
site, keep up the good work.
Yours sincerely,
Michael Marsh.
Thanks Mike, for the
kind remarks about the site. I do put a lot of time and effort
into it, but it is worthwhile when it is appreciated.
Whilst some Richards
bodies are clearly home grown, I would be surprised if Richards
had much input into this one. I suspect that it was made from
knocked down kits, and as far as I can see the only design
differences are the lack of sunroof and the bolt on bumpers, as
you describe. No doubt all the chassis and mechanics are Coventry
built. If Richards had pressed the panels, I think they would have
made a different design, which tends to suggest all the
panels were UK originated. Maybe they put in their own trim
and seats etc, as there are no pictures of that.
However, its
difficult to be precise at this distance so I look forward to
hearing of what you find. Please send news of the restoration as
it goes along and I do hope you get it back on the road.
If you know more
about the T J Richards's factory please tell us about it on the Messageboard
Below are more of
Mike's pictures, you can click on any of them to see a
larger version.
Phil Homer,
Webmaster
p.s. Who spotted the
nice Vanguard Pickup (ute) lurking at the back of two of Mikes
pictures?
I am aware that there are other cars
and information that could be added to this site to make it more comprehensive, so if you
have material and photographs, please let me know. Please send me, Phil Homer, a
message at: Phil Homer
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